Eternal Legacy

Hey there, and welcome to today's encouragement from Our Daily Bread. Our reading, titled Eternal Legacy, was written by Tim Gustafson. As Dust Bowl sandstorms ravaged the United States during the Great Depression, John Milburn Davis, a resident of Hiawatha, Kansas, decided to make a name for himself. A self-made millionaire with no children, Davis might have invested in charity or economic development. Instead, at great expense, he commissioned 11 life-size statues of himself and his deceased wife to stand in the local cemetery.

They hate me in Kansas, Davis told journalist Ernie Pyle. Local residents wanted him to fund the construction of public facilities like a hospital, swimming pool, or park. Yet, all he said was, It's my money, and I spend it the way I please. King Solomon, the wealthiest man of his day, wrote, Whoever loves money never has enough, and as goods increase, so do those who consume them. Solomon had grown keenly aware of the corrupting tendencies of wealth. The Apostle Paul also understood the temptation of wealth and chose to invest his life in obedience to Jesus. Awaiting execution in a Roman prison, he wrote triumphantly, I am already being poured out like a drink offering.

I have finished the race. I have kept the faith. What lasts isn't what we chisel in stone or hoard for ourselves. It's what we give out of love for each other and for him, the one who shows us how to love.

Today's Our Daily Bread devotional scripture reading is from Ecclesiastes chapter 5 verses 8 through 15. If you see the poor oppressed in a district, and justice and rights denied, do not be surprised at such things. For one official is eyed by a higher one, and over them both are others higher still. The increase from the land is taken by all, the king himself profits from the fields. Whoever loves money never has enough. Whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with their income.

This too is meaningless. As goods increase, so do those who consume them, and what benefit are they to the owners except to feast their eyes on them? The sleep of a laborer is sweet, whether they eat little or much, but as for the rich, their abundance permits them no sleep. I have seen a grievous evil under the sun, wealth hoarded to the harm of its owners, or wealth lost through some misfortune, so that when they have children, there is nothing left for them to inherit. Everyone comes naked from their mother's womb, and as everyone comes, so they depart.

They take nothing from their toil that they can carry in their hands. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, please fill us with compassion and make us sensitive to the needs of others. Help us to see how the resources you've given us, whether great or small, can be used to help care for them. Thank you, Lord. It's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Thanks for listening today. I'm Stephen Taver, and today's encouragement was provided by Our Daily Bread Ministries.